荔枝影院

Edited by: Michyrr

Wang Chong stared at King Song, waiting for the answer.

Hesitation appeared in King Song’s eyes, and his eyelashes trembled as if they wanted to blink. But they did not, perhaps out of fear or uncertainty.

The room was deathly still, neither the old butler or Zhangchou Jianqiong saying a word.

The attempt on King Song’s life was of grave importance, and if not handled properly, it would set off a tempest in the court. No one dared to recklessly spout off at a time like this.

The seconds slowly passed.

On the bed, King Song’s lips began to move as if trying to say something, but no sound came out. He simply stared at the nearby Wang Chong.

The look in King Song’s eyes took even Zhangchou Jianqiong aback.

Whether for official business or private affairs, he had interacted with King Song many times, but he had rarely seen such a complicated expression in his eyes.

King Song’s expression was heavy, but he seemed to not care too much about his own condition. On the contrary, his eyes had an indescribable anticipation and solemnity, as if he was trying to tell Wang Chong something.

In the silence, Wang Chong suddenly said, “I understand!”

With a long sigh, he slowly stood back up. Sometimes, words were not necessary. A single look was enough for Wang Chong to understand.

“Your Highness, rest well. Leave the rest to me!”

With these words, Wang Chong left, his heart heavy.

Almost immediately after he left, there was a rush of footsteps from behind him.

“Have... have things truly gotten that serious?”

Zhangchou Jianqiong had followed him, his brow tightly furrowed and a dark cloud of worry on his face.

Wang Chong stopped and said nothing, but there were some things that didn’t need to be said.

“So it really was the First Prince?” Zhangchou Jianqiong still couldn’t help but ask.

“I can’t think of another answer.

“Moreover, what I’m worried about is that this is only the beginning!”

Buzz!

Zhangchou Jianqiong trembled in shock, his face paling.

“This, but, how...”

Zhangchou Jianqiong began to mutter, his entire person dispirited, as if he was unable to accept this answer. The First Prince was the Sage Emperor’s eldest son, the first in line to the throne, and even the appointed regent. The meaning of everything was extremely obvious.

If all went as expected, he would be the future Sage Emperor!

Why would he do such things?

And besides, this was King Song! How could he possibly dare? Did he fear nothing?

Zhangchou Jianqiong had been through many storms, but he still felt his heart go heavy. Even though nothing could be seen, Zhangchou Jianqiong could sense that a massive wave was coming.

This massive wave would obscure the heavens and completely transform the Great Tang!

Wang Chong said nothing. Zhangchou Jianqiong might have found this matter shocking and difficult to accept, but Wang Chong keenly understood what was going on.

The harem incident, the recruiting of the great clans through the Great Buddhist Temple, the recalling of Gao Xianzhi and seizure of the Anxi Protectorate army, the attempted transfer of Wang Chong to Lingnan... all of it pointed to one person.

Wang Chong could think of no other person with the means and motive to do such a thing to King Song.

You’re too impatient! It’s not yours, and it never will be!

With this thought, Wang Chong left the King Song Residence.

......

King Song’s condition was still extremely poor.

According to Divine Physician Zheng and the other imperial physicians, the other party had used an extremely fierce poison that no one had ever heard of. Curing its severe and lingering effects was far from a simple matter.

However, King Song had already managed to get through the most difficult point with Wang Chong’s help. What he needed to do now was get a good rest.

Besides that, even after King Song woke up, he still refused to give any details on his attacker and how he had been poisoned, not even when Wang Chong questioned him. Everything remained wrapped in a massive ball of mystery.

If the First Prince had sent the assassin, why would he remain quiet?

Wang Chong decided to send men to investigate the matter. He needed to find that mysterious poisoner no matter what.

But not even Wang Chong had expected that while he was investigating King Song’s incident, there would be progress on another front.

“Your Highness, we’ve got a clue!”

Wang Chong was within the main hall of the King of Foreign Lands Residence, presiding over the investigation into the attempt on King Song’s life, when Zhang Que entered with an eagle on his shoulder, his face red with excitement.

“Your Highness, you remember that piece of jade you had us investigate? We found someone who knows where that jade came from!”

A few moments later, as Wang Chong stared in shock, a jade artisan of around eighty years old, wearing a gray robe that was turning white from being washed so many times, tottered into the hall.

“Commoner Du Jiangcheng pays respects to His Highness!”

The old jade artisan immediately gave a deferential bow to Wang Chong.

“Old Sir, please rise. There’s no need for such courtesy!”

Wang Chong hastily rose to welcome the man.

“Old Sir, do you really recognize this piece of jade?”

Wang Chong had already questioned all the aged and experienced jade artisans of the capital about this piece of jade, but none of them had recognized the Ghost King’s jade token. He had believed that the chances of learning anything about it were slim, never expecting a good development at a time like this.

“This commoner had a vague recollection of Your Highness’s drawing, but there are a few questions that Your Highness must answer before the answer can be known,” the old artisan said.

“Oh?”

Wang Chong raised an eyebrow in surprise.

“Old Sir, please ask.”

“In Your Highness’s drawing, the jade token was 7.64 inches long. Your Highness, was the size of the token in your drawing the same as the real token?” the artisan asked.

Wang Chong was slightly shaken by the question. He had never imagined that the artisan would ask about the size of the token, nor that this old man would have actually measured its length, even down to the hundredth place. This old jade artisan clearly possessed astonishing experience and insight.

“The drawing was not made according to the actual size. The real token was about 8.2 inches,” Wang Chong said.

“No wonder! Then it’s right! If my guess is correct, its length should actually be 8.17 inches.”

The old artisan muttered, his worry finally resolved.

“There is still one more question!”

The artisan thrust a wrinkled hand into his bosom. There was a rustling sound as the jade artisan slowly took out a piece of paper with a drawing of a jade token upon it, clearly the one that Wang Chong had made.

“Your Highness’s drawing is very good, but it is still lacking in some details. This commoner would like to ask Your Highness: on this place in the jade token, were there any extremely thin patterns similar to web-like plant roots in this area?”

“This...”

Wang Chong was stunned. This old artisan’s questions were far too specific, things that he had never even thought about before. For this drawing, it should have been enough to get down the primary patterns and motifs. How could he have drawn such fine and minor patterns?

Moreover, it had been night at the time, and he had only gotten the briefest glance, so how could he have noticed such a minor detail?

“Wait a moment!”

Wang Chong had just been about to say that he didn’t remember clearly when he suddenly frowned and remembered something. Although there hadn’t been enough time to inspect the token carefully, he was a Subtle realm expert, which imbued him with formidable observation abilities that allowed him to sense the most subtle shifts in energy.

And his formidable Psychic Energy allowed him to brand these tiny details into his mind.

Although the Ghost King had left in haste, Wang Chong clearly recalled a faint gleam of rainbow light from that ancient token.

“They weren’t web-like plant roots. They... were tiny, blood-colored, vein-like patterns!” Wang Chong suddenly said.

Hearing Wang Chong’s words, the jade artisan trembled as if he had been jabbed by a needle, his head turning upward in agitation.

“Vein-like patterns, exactly, blood-colored, vein-like patterns! It’s right! That must be Gaochang Jade!”

The shriveled face of the old man blushed red with excitement, as if he had encountered the object of his dreams.

“To think that in his eighties, this old man would be able to interact with something as precious as Gaochang Jade!”

Wang Chong and Zhang Que glanced at each other in surprise. The jade artisan’s reaction had been completely unexpected, but it was clear that he understood this object’s origins.

“Old Sir, you said that this is Gaochang Jade? What is special about this jade?” Wang Chong asked.

“Haha, the token you saw with the vein-like patterns was Gaochang Jade. The people of Gaochang call it Blood Jade, and it is an extremely precious kind of jade. If this old artisan were able to touch a piece of Gaochang Jade even once, I could truly die without regrets,” the old jade artisan happily said, his demeanor completely transforming.

Wang Chong’s brow creased. He had never heard of Gaochang Jade before, but given the old man’s reaction, it was clearly very valuable.

“Gaochang Jade is one of the highest qualities of jade, and in the past, it was only used for tribute, for the particular use of the imperial household. Ordinary people could never own such a thing!”

Buzz!

Wang Chong and Zhang Que were stunned once more. It had never come to mind that this jade token might be a tribute offering.

Only the Sage Emperor’s consorts, a few favored Princes, and extremely important officials of the court could ever have access to tributes made to the imperial household.

If the Ghost King possessed such an object, then the entire matter took on a completely different tone!